This Saturday 9 April 2016 will see Inter travel to the Stadio Comunale Matusa to face a Frosinone side involved in a relegation battle (kick-off 15:00 CET).
Inter come into this game on the back of a disappointing 1-2 defeat to Torino at the San Siro last weekend, which has seen the Nerazzurri effectively lose hope in the Champions League qualification race.
Inter started the match against the Granata well and where ahead through a Mauro Icardi penalty (his 13th goal of the season), however it was unfortunate on Torino as Moretti’s arm was on the ground so it wasn’t an unnatural movement towards the ball.
After the break Torino came out the stronger and equalised after Molinaro beat Santon down the right and finished from a tight angle.
The equaliser really shook Inter and things weren’t made any easier by Miranda’s sending off for a foul on Belotti. Torino took control of the game after that and took the lead from a highly disputed penalty.
Belotti ran across the path of Nagatomo after a through ball from Maxi Lopez, but replays suggested the striker dived. Nagatomo received a red card and Inter were down to nine men. It was the Nerazzurri’s tenth red card of the season which is very strange considering Inter have conceded the second least amount of fouls this season (Napoli are the cleanest team this season).
It wasn’t the first time this season that Inter have been on the end of some questionable decisions, but that shouldn’t take away from the fact that the Nerazzurri’s second half performance wasn’t good enough to beat a team that had only won once in their last 10 matches.
The Torino loss sees Inter remain in fifth place in the league table but fall eight points behind third placed Roma.
Frosinone come into this game on the back of a 4-0 hammering at the hands of Genoa last weekend where the final score line didn’t reflect the Canarini’s performance.
Coach Roberto Stellone has did a fantastic job with one of the smallest clubs ever to compete in Serie A. Since taking over in 2012 he has led the Canarini from Serie C1 to the top division in three years and with back-to-back promotions.
It is perhaps no surprise then that Stellone has been linked with a move to Torino and should he keep Frosinone in the division then his stock will rise even further.
Frosinone will be stiff opposition at home as six of their seven wins this season have come at the ‘Matusa’, however the Canarini have lost the most games (18) and conceded the most goals (59) in Serie A this season.
With Hellas looking doomed at the bottom of the league it seems it will be two of Palermo, Carpi and Frosinone that will be relegated. Despite being in 19th position, the Canarini are only one point behind Carpi in 18th and Palermo who currently sit outside the relegation zone in 17th.
Here is the Inter team news and probable line-up as reported by La Gazzetta dello Sport at the time of writing this article:
Inter will have Joao Miranda and Yuto Nagatomo suspended for this game after their sending offs against Torino.
Samir Handanovic starts in goal with Danilo D’Ambrosio expected to return to right back in favour of Davide Santon. With Miranda missing, Roberto Mancini is expected to start a central pairing of Jeison Murillo and Juan Jesus with Alex Telles replacing the suspended Nagatomo at left back.
In the double-pivot in a 4-2-3-1 system Gary Medel should start despite having a fever this week alongside Geoffrey Kondogbia who returns after injury.
In the attacking positions Eder could start on the right with Ivan Perisic on the left. In the trequartista role Marcelo Brozovic could start instead of Adem Ljajic behind captain Mauro Icardi in the central striking role.
Probable Inter line-up (subject to change): (4-2-3-1) Handanovic; D’Ambrosio, Murillo, Juan Jesus, Telles; Medel, Kondogbia; Eder, Brozovic, Perisic; Icardi (C).
Bench: Carrizo, Berni, Santon, Popa, Gyamfi, Melo, Gnoukouri, Biabiany, Ljajic, Jovetic, Palacio, Manaj.
Some Stats:
Inter and Frosinone have only faced each other once in competitive football.
That meeting was earlier this season at the San Siro where the Nerazzurri won 4-0 with goals from Biabiany, Icardi, Murillo and Brozovic.
Frosinone’s top scorer is Daniel Ciofani who has nine league goals while Inter’s top scorer is Mauro Icardi on 13 goals.
Inter forward Eder will be facing one of his former teams as the now Italian international had a spell with Frosinone from 2007-09 in Serie B scoring 20 goals in 52 games.
Frosinone have two Inter players on loan this season in goalkeeper Francesco Bardi and striker Samuele Longo.
Player to Watch: Eder – The January signing still hasn’t scored for Inter but beware Frosinone as former players tend to score against their former teams.
My Prediction: Frosinone 1-3 Inter
Scorers: Ciofani (Frosinone), Icardi, Eder, Perisic (Inter)
Officials: Referee: Paolo Tagliavento Assistants: Musolino, Preti
Fourth Official: Passeri Additional Assistants: Calvarese, Pasqua
Author’s Note: Inter’s confidence has took quite the beating after last weekend’s loss against Torino which saw the Nerazzurri fall eight points behind Roma. If there’s any hope left in qualifying for the Champions League then this is a must-win game. I do think Inter will have too much for Frosinone, however it looks very unlikely that Inter can claw back an eight point gap on Roma with seven games remaining.
